Day of Mourning
by TheCastorbean
Summary: "...he had already decided that he wouldn't let her go this time, she had cried by herself long enough. Space isn't what she needs now, she needs healing and he knows just how to give it to her."


The salmon haired dragon slayer carefully opened the window, knowing from previous experience that the squeak of the hinges wouldn't wake her as he climbed down from the sill and crouched beside her bed. She was tucked under the covers, as he had known she would be, with only the top of her blonde head peeking out from beneath the comforter. Gently gripping the edge of the comforter Natsu peeled it away to reveal her.

She was curled up in a ball and upon brushing her matted blonde hair away from her face he noted that the skin around her eyes was red and puffy from constant crying, her cheeks still damp with tears as if she had only fallen asleep not moments before.

It made Natsu uneasy to see her like this, his hands gently brushing away the tear tracks on her cheeks as he shifted closer to her. The bed creaked under his weight and she stirred, groaning loudly and rolling over in her sleep.

The Dragon Slayer kicked off his shoes and slipped under the covers with her, pulling the comforter over them while bringing her tiny frame into a tight embrace. Her back was pressed against his bare chest and he nuzzled into the crook of her neck, inhaling her floral scent. He didn't like the salty scent of tears and bitter tang of sadness that was mixed in with her normally pure and cheerful smell.

"It's okay Luce…" he whispered "I'm here…"

She mumbled something in her sleep and nuzzled closer to him, her hands clutching his vest as she buried her face into his shoulder.

It was that time of year again, the one day that she never came into the guild. Lucy always disappeared off everyone's radar, refusing to go on any missions and politely declining any invitations with a smile and a slightly guilty apology. Nobody ever pushed her and few people even noticed that her days off always fell around the same time of year. Those that noticed only had a vague idea of where she went. But Natsu knew.

Every year Lucy Heartfilia went to visit the graves of her mother and father where they were buried in the countryside. Her father had saved up a considerable sum to have her mother relocated from their former estate and put in his will that he wanted to be buried beside her. The spot that he'd chosen was on top of a lovely hill at the base of a sakura tree and overlooking a man-made river that formed a mote around the hill.

Lucy had often laughed at how theatrical and gaudy her father could be, but Natsu knows that she appreciates the sentiment. The portion of land that her father had purchased for their graves went to her after his death and she makes the journey there once a year to visit them. She stays there for the majority of the day cleaning up the grave site, placing flowers and talking to her parents. Once night begins creeping over the horizon she makes her way home, takes a quick shower and curls up under her covers.

She always cries herself to sleep like that, alone in a dark apartment.

Natsu knows all this because he followed her the first time but didn't approach. He instinctively knew that she wanted to be alone because that's how he felt whenever it came to Igneel. The Dragon Slayers arms tightened around her, drawing her more firmly against him. Her head was tucked into the crook of his neck, the top of his chin resting on the crown of her head.

The scent of spring overwhelmed his senses coupled with the almost imperceptible tang of vanilla and strawberry, forever engrained into her natural smell by her love of yogurt. A small quirk of a smile appeared on his lips. He always came to her the evening after and snuggled up beside her in bed. She always woke up early the next morning and squirmed out of his hold, making a quick trip to the bathroom in an attempt to hide the evidence of her mourning before coming back and sliding back under the covers to cuddle up to him.

The day she chose to cry for her lost loved ones was always July 6th. He had pondered about this choice for a long time before consulting her diary earlier today, something that he rarely did unless she was busy or in the shower. As it turns out she always picked the day before the actually date of her mother's death because July 7th was the day that Igneel, Metalicana and Grandene had disappeared.

Wendy has Charle, Gajeel has Levy and Lily. Natsu has Happy but according to her diary Lucy also wants to be there for him, which is why she's decided to make her day of mourning a day earlier. Over the many years that he's known her she had certainly taken care of him on this day every year.

She doesn't treat him much differently, the only change is that she's a little kinder making sure that he has a large breakfast, lunch and dinner composed almost entirely of his favorite foods in addition to taking him and happy fishing as well as allowing him to pick a mission and not complaining about how outrageous it is. He had entertained the thought that she gave up her claim on July 7th to distract him from his own pain but he'd never imagined that it would actually prove to be true.

'_She really is more then I'll ever deserve…'_ he thought, pressing his lips firmly into her hair.

At the contact she started to squirm, Natsu's internal clock told him that it was nearly dawn, the time when she usually woke up. Silently the blonde started to wiggle in his grip but he had already decided that he wouldn't let her go this time, she had cried by herself long enough. Space isn't what she needs now, she needs healing and he knows just how to give it to her.

She started trying to remove his arms and froze when his grip tightened instead.

"Natsu…?" she whispered so lightly that he barely caught it even with his dragon hearing.

"Luce"

"You're awake?"

"Yes"

"You should go back to sleep, I need to get up and make breakfast"

Her tone was light and laced with sleep. It was an adorable sound that he always reveled in during the rare mornings that he actually got to hear it considering that he scarcely woke before her.

"Not this morning Luce"

"What do you mean? Let me go Natsu"

She was past the sleepy haze now, annoyance entering her voice in a way that warned of an impending Lucy kick. He still didn't let go but did loosen his hold just enough to be able to look at her. She tried to squirm away but he pinned her against the mattress with his left hand while his right came up to grasp her chin and turn her face toward him, rubbing his thumb against the dried tear tracks on her face.

"You don't have to cry anymore Lucy, I'm right here and I'm not gonna let you keep going through this by yourself"

Her chocolate eyes widened in the darkness and her body went completely still. Natsu saw her take her bottom lip between her teeth, the first sign of emotional overload. Her tiny hands came up to rest on his chest, pushing lightly in a half-hearted attempt to get away.

"How…How long have you-"

"Since the beginning" he answered, still rubbing his thumb back and forth across her cheek "I let you have your space because it's what you needed but I'm done waiting around Luce."

He leaned down to press his forehead against hers, "You comfort me every year on the day my dad disappeared and I'm gonna do the same for you."

Her cheeks were tinted red from suppressed tears and she sniffed awkwardly before attempting to duck her head purely out of habit. His hand prevented her from doing so. Lucy firmly worried her lip between her teeth, willing the tears that were glossing her eyes not to spill over.

Wordlessly Natsu pulled her tightly against him, burying her head into the crook of his neck and wrapping his arms tightly around her waist.

"Don't hold back Luce, when your sad it's okay to cry"

With a fractured sob she buried her hands into the fabric of his vest and finally released the restrictor that she'd placed on her anguish, letting the sadness flow. Natsu held her while she broke down, sharing her pain while simultaneously being glad that he was able to be here for her.

He would do anything for her after all.

1 Year Later

Natsu followed close behind his blonde partner as she walked over the wooden bridge that connected the small island grave with the rest of the countryside. She was carrying an almost absurdly large bouquet of flowers that nearly eclipsed her view of the area around her. It was a cheerful and beautiful place, which is probably part of the reason that she was smiling, though that was only part of it.

The grass had grown almost to knee height since Lucy had last visited and she had mentioned that they would need to cut it before they left. Pushing her way through the overgrowth Lucy knelt down in front of the spectacular monument that commemorated her mother and the simple headstone that marked her father.

She set the bouquet down between the two graves and lowered herself fully down onto her knees in order to address them.

"Mama, Papa It's good to see you again" she said softly, nervously fiddling with the hem of her shirt while she talked. "I'm sure you remember my teammate Natsu" Lucy continued, gesturing to her salmon haired friend who raised a hand in greeting.

"This year has been so great and I can't wait to tell you guys all about it, everyone at Fairy Tail is still crazy as ever, did you hear that we managed to take down Tartarus and save Fiore!"

Lucy laughed at the memory, "everyone has gotten so much stronger and I wish…I wish that you guys could have met them all"

The breeze picked up and Natsu caught the scent of tears. As if to confirm this theory Lucy lifted an arm and used her sleeve to wipe at her eyes. Abruptly she stood, still wiping the tears from her eyes and sniffling softly.

"Natsu, I'm going to go get the gardening tools really quick. I'll be right back"

She shot him one of her dazzling smiles and began walking back toward the bridge. He didn't follow her; there was something important that he had to do. Once his enhanced hearing confirmed that Lucy was out of earshot Natsu turned back toward the graves.

"Hey there…Mr. and Mrs. Heartfilia, I know that Luce has probably already told you all about me but I'm Natsu Dragneel. I wanted to let you know that Lucy is doing great; she's really strong and has helped me and my friends a lot over the years. I really don't know what we'd do without her…especially me. I know that I'm hotheaded, destructive and not very smart as far as book learning goes but I….I'm in love with your daughter and thought it would be good to ask your permission to continue being with her."

After finishing Natsu took a breath and bowed low just like a gentleman asking for a daughters hand in marriage. At the same moment a gust of wind blew past, bringing with it a strange warmth that was somehow different from the sweltering heat of the summer sun.

Glancing up Natsu could almost swear that he saw them for a moment, Layla and Jude Heartfilia standing side by side just behind the bouquet that was mysteriously not disturbed by the strong breeze but he blinked at the vision was gone, two untended grave stones standing in its wake.

Blinking in confusion he righted himself and spun around as he caught the familiar scent of his girlfriend approaching. She carried with her a few magical tools that were far too much for her to handle herself. The picture of her struggling to carry several lacrima gardening tools made him chuckle lightly before going over to help her, grabbing most of the tools out of her hands while she pouted and insisted that she could have managed.

The goofy grin returned to his face and he shifted everything into his left hand, wrapping the right around her waist and giving her a peck on her cheek. A pretty blush spread across her cheeks and his grin widened. Even after months of being a couple she still blushed when he did that.

Somewhere another couple intertwined their hands watching as the blonde and salmon haired mages began to clean up their graves.

"At least she's happy; I was starting to worry about her"

He nodded "As was I, but It seems that she has someone taking care of her well"

She hummed thoughtfully "True, that Natsu Dragneel seems like a fine young man to be with our girl"

He huffed in response, "Better not hurt her otherwise I'll haunt him until he dies"

She laughed heartedly and brushed her shoulder against his, "They'll be fine"

And they were.

END


End file.
